chapter 1 early civilizations mesopotamia & the nile
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Chapter 1 Early Civilizations Mesopotamia & The Nile. City States of Mesopotamia. Figure 1-3 p10. III. Civilization in Mesopotamia Sumerian Cities. Sumerian Cities Surrounded by walls. Mud brick structures Accumulation of surplus wealth Ziggurat – the temple. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
Chapter 1
Early Civilizations
Mesopotamia & The Nile
Figure 1-3 p10
City States of Mesopotamia
III. Civilization in MesopotamiaSumerian Cities
Sumerian Cities Surrounded by walls. Mud brick structures Accumulation of
surplus wealth
Ziggurat – the temple
Excavation of Warka showing the ruins of Uruk
Kingship
King believed to be of divine origin Theocracy – priests and priestesses had
an important role in governance, gods ruled cities actual ruling power rested with the king
p11
Royal Standard of Ur, 2700 B.C.E.
Rise of surplus of wealth led to a more Militarized society
ruled by a king
Economy
Agriculture Commerce and industry (woolen textiles,
pottery, metal work) Imported copper, tin and timber Utilized the wheel that had been invented
by nomads in 3000BCE
Society Four Tiered Hierarchy
Elites Dependent commoners
elites clients who worked for the palace and temple estates
Free commoners farmers 90% OF POP, merchants, scribes,
craftspeople Slaves
belonged to palace officials, mostly female slaves to weave cloth and grind grain and to rich landowners who used them for agricultural and domestic work
Social Change with Urbanization
VIllage Patrifocal Concentration of wealth Stratification of wealth Sexual morality regulated Paternity & inheritance
Pastoral After 3500BCE – city
influences Increasingly organized
around raiding & military For some women
participated equally Greece & Persia Sauromatian & Saka Rode, hunted, went into
battle Married after first kill
III. Empires in Mesopotamia
Sargon’s Empire (2340BCE – 2100BCE) By 2300 – women & sex trade 2340BCE Sargon, leader of the Semitic
people He used former rulers as governors Power was a standing army of 5,400 men He expanded the empire to include all of
Mesopotamia and lands westward to the Mediterranean
Women During Sargon Could inherit property Exercised political power
Sumerian Queens had seals, occupied important positions of influence
Played an important role in temple rituals Enheduanna, Priestess of the Temple of Ur –
Sargon’s daughter Emergence of “Women’s Work” & Domesticity
Slaves & commoners – produced food, textiles & Ceramics
Scribes, Bakers, Prohpehts, Temple workers
Women & Religion
Minoan mother goddess
2800 BCE Greek Island,
Crete
Shamans
Cult Leaders
Goddesses
III. Empires in Mesopotamia
Hammurabi’s Empire (1792- 1750 B.C.E.) Employed an army of foot soldiers (axes, spears, copper or
bronze daggers) Divided and subdued opponents Gained control of Sumer and Akkad creating a new
Mesopotamia Called himself sun of Babylon, the king who has made the four
quarters of the world subservient new capital at Babylon
p12
Social Changes Institutional Patriarchy Tribute Extraction Social Stratification – disproportionate
power system beginning of Eurasian Slave trade
Society became a political institution that enslaved numerous members of its population to provide order and stability for itself
Law codes promoted universal standards of behavior
Irrigation & extensive military defense
Decline of Women’s status Generally
Devaluation of social freedoms Denial of claims to the results of their labor Reshaping of spiritual expression
Murder of a woman marked down from Capital offense (2000 BCE) to a fine under Hammurabi code (1750BCE
Work became gender based, women paid less if it was the same
Right to inherit ended after 2000BCE Women’s political & religious positions of power and roles
ended by 1000BCE
III. Empires in Mesopotamia
The Code of Hammurabi: Society in Mesopotamia (Discussion)
What does the code reveal about culture and society? PP 18-19 of text Do the codes evidence a “system of strict
justice” or represent a code that is written in the principle of “an eye for an eye” or system of equal punishment?
What type of justice system is it?
p14
Stele of Hammurabi
Depicts Kings Divinity
Records the code Judges
encouraged men to sell women & children to satisfy debts
Changes For women
Right to inherit property eroded after 2000BCE
By 1000 BCE political power passed to men
Decline of women’s spiritual power Myths emerged that recounted legendary
battles between earth goddesses and sky thunder gods arose
By 1000 BCE no longer permitted to take on cultic roles such as priestesses
III. Culture of Mesopotamia The Importance of Religion
Understanding of physical environment Polytheistic
An – God of Sky (Earth Goddess had originally been more prominent)
Enlil- God of wind Enki – God of earth, rivers, wells and canals and
inventions of crafts Ninhursaga – goddess of soil, mountains, vegetation
Mother goddess, mother of all children Gave birth to kings
divination
p15
III. Writing & Sciences
Cuneiform “wedge-shaped” Oldest texts 3000 B.C.E. Writing as a form of communication and
knowledge transference is only 5,000 years old
Math, Geometry, Astronomy, 12 month Calendar
Table 1-1 p12
Cuneiform
Developed for record keeping Scribal education established to produce
professionally trained elite scribes Temples, palaces, military, government
p15
Development of Cuneiform3100 – 700 B.C.E
The sign for star came to mean “god” or “Sky”
Figure 1-4 p17
IV. Egyptian Civilization: “The Gift of the Nile”
IV. Egyptian Civilization: “The Gift of the Nile”
A. The Impact of Geography The Nile- gentle and predicable Black land – fertile soil Red land – deserts to the west and east Lower Egypt – delta region Upper Egypt – upstream and to the south Protected from invasion Prosperous agricultural economy Development of trade
Old, Middle & New Kingdoms
Periods of Long term stability Strong Monarchical authority Competent Bureaucracy Freedom from invasion Construction of temples and pyramids Intellectual and cultural activity
Intermediate Periods
Period between the three Kingdoms Weak political structures Rivalry for leadership Invasions Decline in construction Restructuring of society
First Dynasty of Egypt3100 BCE
King Menes United Upper and Lower Egypt Double Crown Created to represent
unification Began the longest civilization in history Longest home rule in history Most favorable for women
p23
Old Kingdom
3-6th Dynasties, 2686 – 2180 BCE Capital at Memphis Kingship: the Pharaoh – divine origin Kings Family - administrative Ruled according to principle of Ma’at
Conveyed ideas of truth and justice, right order and harmony
Development of 4th Dynasty Bureaucracy Office of Vizier “Steward of the whole
Land” Responsible to the King
Nomes & Nomarchs Egypt divided into provinces 22 – Upper Egypt 20- - Lower Egypt Nomarch – or governor administrated and
was responsible to the King and Vizier
Middle Kingdom2055 – 1650 BCE
Nomes restructured with boundaries and obligations to state clarified
Nomarchs became hereditary officeholders Collected state taxes Recruited labor for royal projects
New concern of Pharaohs for the people
p19
King Menkaure & Queen
Invasion my Hyksos of W. Asia ended the Middle Kingdom by 1650 BCE
Hyksos prevailed with horse-drawn Chariots
Ruled for 100 years
IV. D. Culture of Egypt
Four Tiered Hierarchy God-King Nobles & Priests Merchants & Artisans
Extensive trade & international travel
Commoners or farmers Paid taxes Military & labor service
IV. D. Culture of Egypt
Polytheistic Sun God – Atum, Re Air God – Amon River and land god and goddess – Osiris
and Isis, born Horus Osiris – symbol of resurrection and birth
Culture of Egypt - Construction
Complexes or cities of the dead Incorporated Pyramids
Larger for kings burial, smaller or family
Mastabas Rectangular structures with flat roofs, tombs for
noble officials
Tombs Rooms furnished and stocked so the Ka or
spiritual body could return to a well preserved physical body (mummification)
Culture of Egypt – Art and Writing
Hieroglyphics – “priest carvings” or “sacred Writings” Pictographic like Cuneiform
Developed to record and transmit knowledge Medical books, literature, record keeping
Children taken to educate as scribes for royalty and government Opportunity to rise in social status
p15
Pictographic writing of Egypt
IV. E. Egyptian Empire
18th Dynasty Pharoahs used new weapons to throw off
Hyksos and reunite Egypt New Kingdom 1550 – 1070 BCE
Most powerful state in the Middle East Massive wealth displayed by new temples
Queen Hatshepsut 1503-1480BCE
First of four women to become Pharaoh Built the great temple Deir el Bahri near
Thebes Sent out military expeditions Encouraged mining Fostered agriculture Sponsored trade expeditions
Women In Egypt Maintained economic agency
right to inherit property for thousands of years Monogamous marriage Could initiate and seek divorce Women: scribes, bakers, prophets, temple
workers Women’s political agency
Queens Priestesses- controlled territory as virtual rulers,
collected taxes and spent resources Elite Women could become gods after death,
p23
Kingdom of Nubia
Akhenaten & Religious Change 18th C Amenhotep (1364-1347 BCE)
introduced the worship of Aten, god of the sun disk (Monotheistic Religion)
Changed his name to Akhenaten – Servant of Aten Closed temples of other gods Lessened power of Amon-Re and the
priesthood at Thebes Replaced the Capital of Thebes with
Akhetaten “Horizon of Aten” in modern Tell el-Amarna
Decline of Egyptian Empire 19th Dynasty under Ramses II (1279 – 1213
BCE) restored Egyptian power Regained Canaan
13th Century invasions by “sea peoples” drove borders to original frontiers
20th Dynasty in 1070 for 1000 years Libyans Nubians/Kushites Persians Macedonians Rome